Outside the Box
by Misanagi
Summary: Part 2 of the 'College not an arc series'. Normalcy is overrated it's what falls outside the norm which truly deserves our attention. Follows immediately after Number Lovers and Bookworms.


**Outside the Box**

**By Misanagi**

Rating: PG13

Pairings: 1x2, 3x4, 5xD

Summary: Part of the College not-an-arc series. Normalcy is overrated; it's what falls outside the norm which truly deserves our attention.

Warnings: AU, College fic, language.

Archive: Gundanium Line

Notes: This follows immediately after "Number Lovers and Bookworms".

Dedication: For Sharon, just because.

Thanks a lot to Anne for the beta.

* * *

"So, your best friend and my best friend." Duo was leaning on the balcony. On the floor below, Quatre and Trowa were walking together, heading for the exit.

"It looks like it." Heero was standing beside Duo, also watching the couple below.

"So," said Duo, nudging Heero with his elbow. "Want to go get a beer?"

Heero shrugged and gave Duo an appreciative look. "Why not."

"You might miss your next class," warned Duo.

Heero shrugged again. "You are a bad influence."

Duo smirked and put a hand around Heero's shoulders. "Always."

Choosing not to dignify that statement with a reply, Heero simply started walking to the stairs. He heard Duo chuckle and started to walk beside him, not taking his arm away from Heero's shoulders until they reached the narrow staircase.

Between the third and second floor, Heero remembered that today the teacher would be answering questions about the midterm on Friday. He stopped mid-step, and a short redhead girl who was walking up, almost bumped into him. She gave him an annoyed look before walking around him and continuing on her way.

"What's up?" Duo asked, moving closer to Heero to allow people to circulate around them.

The words Heero needed to say were 'I can't cut class today,' but instead, he just said, "Nothing," and started to walk again. He didn't need to go to class anyway. He had no questions. The only reason he found that type of lecture useful was because the way the teacher answered to the students' doubts often gave Heero a pretty good idea of what the midterm questions would be.

As soon as they were out of the building Duo slowed his pace and asked, "Anywhere you have in mind for that beer?"

The only person Heero had ever had a drink with in the vicinity of the university was Trowa. He didn't count that time in first semester when he had gone with a few of his classmates and then proceeded to hear them talk for an hour about Jackass. Since then, he hadn't felt the need to socialize very much. "Hips."

Duo tilted his head slightly to the right and the corner of his lips quivered. "Hips?" His eyes trailed down for a moment and focused on Heero's waistline before moving back up.

There was something about Duo's gesture that made Heero oddly uncomfortable. "The place where we had lunch the other day," Heero answered, and to him his voice sounded colder than usual.

Letting out a short laugh Duo started walking again. Heero followed. "Hips?" Duo shook his head. "What kind of name is that?"

"I'm not the right person to ask for that information," Heero replied.

Duo rolled his eyes. "You know, Heero? You are kind of weird of sometimes." He paused and then added, "Not like an engineer at all. I like it."

Heero found himself smiling slightly. He had never minded being weird. Actually, he felt proud about being different, about being able to think outside the box. He glanced at Duo out of the corner of his eye. He had know from the moment he had first seen Duo that he had to be capable of independent thought.

It had been a disappointment to learn that Duo studied law, but whatever points Duo had lost with that bit of information he had regained and even exceeded when they had talked. Duo was interesting and Heero liked to explore interesting things. Especially since there weren't many things that caught his attention to begin with.

"Are you going to cut your hair?" Duo, as independent as he showed to be, was studying a field that would end with him working with the system, and those who worked with the system very rarely acted against it.

Duo grabbed the end of his braid with one hand and looked at it. "Why? What's wrong with it?" He brought the tip closer to his eyes. "No split ends yet."

Heero shrugged. "There aren't many lawyers with braids."

"Braid. Just one," Duo clarified. "I'm not Pippi Longstocking." He let go of his braid. "I made Quatre promise me that if I ever mentioned cutting my hair for work related issues he would lock me in a room with nothing but an Era CD until I come to my senses."

That had been a good answer. Heero smirked. "Era?" He knew he had heard the name but he couldn't place it.

"You know, that new age group that got its fifteen minutes in the nineties?" Heero frowned so Duo started to sing in a high falsetto, "Ameno, ameno ah ah..."

Eyes widening a bit, Heero nodded in recognition. "I had successfully eliminated that song from my memory." He glared at Duo.

"Sorry, man." Duo grinned. "I'll buy the first round to make it up to you."

Heero nodded again but then he noticed that the words Duo had sung, the only ones Heero remembered of the song, were being repeated over and over in his head. Duo earned himself another glare. "Make it the first two."

* * *

Duo was feeling tipsy.

Maybe eight bottles of beer hadn't been a good idea, especially as five of them had been before lunch. Still, he cocked his head to the side and raised both eyebrows at Heero as he asked, "Another?"

Heero's response was to gesture to the waitress to get them two more bottles.

Duo thought that maybe he should admit defeat and ask for coffee instead, but his pride wouldn't let him. Heero's suggestion that Duo couldn't hold his liquor had been all Duo needed to prove him wrong, and he would do it, even if he had to call Quatre to pick him up later because he wasn't up to take a cab home alone.

He glanced at his cellphone noticing that there were no missed calls. "I bet they are still together."

"They?" Heero was sitting with one hand resting behind the back of the chair and the other on the table, grasping the empty bottle. The relaxed position made Heero look extremely sexy, and Duo had to swallow hard before he could answer.

"Our best friends. Quatre would have called if the date had ended."

"It's not a date."

Duo narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. For what he had seen, Trowa was interested in Quatre. He didn't want to think what could be happening if he had misread the signals. What if Trowa was straight? Duo stopped that line of thought immediately. "What do you mean?" His voice wasn't cheerful anymore, and he knew all the protectiveness he felt for his best friend was showing now.

"Trowa doesn't date," Heero replied, still looking relaxed. "He finds the concept meaningless, so whatever they are doing, isn't dating. He's interested in your friend so he wouldn't date him."

The waitress arrived with their beers at that moment and Duo gratefully took a long swig. "Do you date?" He didn't know where the words had come from so he decided to blame the beer. However, he held his ground and refused to lower his eyes.

Heero didn't lower them either. "The opportunity has never presented itself."

Duo smiled. Heero was definitely weird. "There was never anyone you wanted to get to know better?"

Heero stared at him for a moment and then shook his head.

"What if there was?" asked Duo, leaning forward slightly.

Without breaking eye contact, Heero brought the bottle to his lips. He took his time and Duo started to drum his fingers on the table. Finally Heero put the bottle down, then placed both arms on the table and leaned forward too. "Maybe."

Not knowing what to say, Duo used Heero's tactic and drank. When he put the bottle down he just said, "I don't date."

Heero laughed. So far, all the emotions Heero had showed were small smiles and smirks. The laugh wasn't long and wasn't loud but it was the most honest laugh Duo had ever heard. Duo finished his beer and grinned at Heero. "Another?"

* * *

Duo was definitely drunk and Heero wasn't a lot better either. He had lost count after the twelfth beer and hadn't even bothered to check the bill like he usually did. They had paid and left, leaning heavily on each other as they tried to reach a main street where they could find a cab.

Heero had already decided that he would accompany Duo home first to make sure that nothing happened along the way. He had enough money for the cab fair.

"It's a pretty night." Duo was looking at the mountains. The night was clear so the stars could be seen, blinking over the hills, behind the buildings.

"Nature overshadowing the city," Heero replied.

"A poet." Duo laughed. "An engineer poet."

Heero had never considered himself anything but analytical. Maybe it was Trowa's influence, but Heero didn't quite believe himself. "It's the beer." He didn't believe that either.

"Nah," Duo waved his hand, which made him stumble a bit, but Heero steadied him. "If it's the beer, then it's you and it's just something you repress when you are sober."

The fact that he had to think that statement through was another sign that proved to Heero that he'd had one too many beers. "I didn't know you studied psychology too."

"Nah," Duo said again, this time without the hand gesture. "Freud has already ruined enough Greek tragedies for me."

In the course of the afternoon Heero had discovered that some of Duo's statements had no logical reply. Ha had opted to take a swing of his bottle whenever that happened, but that option wasn't available to him now, and for some reason, he felt that he needed to respond in some way. "Jung puts things in a better perspective."

Duo shrugged. "Never heard anything. Just hearsay." He looked confused for a moment. "Never /read/ anything. Overanalyzing human's behavior takes all the fun out of it. Cat says emotions aren't logical."

"They aren't. It's the conflict between mind and heart that makes things interst… fun"

Duo stopped walking and smiled at Heero. He leaned close to Heero, invading his personal space and Heero didn't pull back. He just waited. "You are fun," said Duo, and then moved an inch closer. He was smiling, and Heero smiled too.

"Maxwell?"

They both looked to the side, searching the shadows for the owner of the voice.

"Wufei?" Duo blinked.

"I think you interrupted them," said a clearly amused woman's voice.

Duo whined. "Why is the Devil Woman with you?"

"Because," the man replied, coming into the light where Heero could see him, "she's my girlfriend."

The woman hit Wufei's arm. "Lover. You know I despise that term." She turned then to Duo and smirked. Heero had never seen a smirk so predatory before. "A bit drunk Barbie Boy? Is Ken here taking you home?"

Heero glared at the woman but she just smirked back.

"He doesn't look that sober either," said Wufei, and Heero turned his glare to him, even though he knew it was true. "Come on, I'll give you a ride. I have a car."

Her smirk widened. "I'll take Duo. He's on my way."

Duo shook his head and took a step back. Wufei gave the woman a look and said, "Behave."

"Fine." She tossed her hair back. "It's too easy to torment him now anyway."

For what he had seen, Heero couldn't qualify these people as Duo's friends, and he wouldn't let him go unless he was sure Duo would be safe. "Who are they?"

"Wufei Chang and the Devil Woman." He gestured at each of them as if he was making a formal introduction. "He's my friend and she's my karma."

Wufei's eyes narrowed. "Duo, you will treat her with respect."

The woman put a hand on Wufei's shoulders and smiled. "It's okay. This is the way Duo and I interact. Besides, he's sort of cute when he's drunk and babbling." Heero didn't like the way she was talking to Duo but he felt it wasn't his place to intervene.

Duo turned to Wufei, dismissing the woman. "She's not riding with you?"

"I already rode him today," she said, with a polite tone that suggested she was talking about a table set. "I'll drive myself home and then ride him again tonight."

Heero's mouth opened slightly. He had to give it to her; she knew how to make men speechless.

There was a tense moment of silence before she looked at Heero and said, "Come on, Ken, we don't want Barbie Boy here to catch a cold." Then she turned her back to him and started walking.

As Heero glared at her back, Wufei extended his hand. "Wufei Chang. Excuse Dorothy, she's not very subtle."

"As a brick wall," mumbled Duo.

"Heero Yuy." He shook Wufei's hand and they started walking, still holding onto Duo.

"Ken suits you better," said Dorothy, not turning around to look at him.

"Devil Woman," Duo grumbled. Wufei remained silent and Heero just glared at her back.

* * *

The smell of coffee woke him up. Duo opened his eyes to find Quatre sitting on his bed with a cup of coffee in his hand.

"You have class in an hour."

Duo closed his eyes and put a hand on his forehead. "Not going."

"Want breakfast?"

"Aspirin." Duo buried his head on his pillow.

"You need to sit up straight or you'll choke."

Duo grumbled but did as Quatre said. He hated it when Quatre made sense in the mornings. As soon as Duo was sitting, Quatre's fingers pushed something small against his lips. Duo opened his mouth and took the pill while Quatre handed him a glass of water. After that, the smell of the coffee became more alluring, and Duo reached for the cup and drank it slowly.

"Why aren't you in class?" Duo asked when he was awake enough to glance at the clock on his nightstand and realize that it was nine o'clock.

Quatre gave him a 'isn't it obvious?' look, and Duo smiled. "Thank you."

Duo finished his coffee and put the mug on the nightstand. "So, how did it go?"

The smile in Quatre's face said enough. "It was good." His smile brightened. "I kissed him, he kissed me back. He's coming tonight to watch a movie."

"Hell yeah!" Duo grinned and threw his arms around Quatre. Quatre laughed and returned the hug. "What do you say if we take the day off?"

Quatre shook his head but then put a hand under his chin and looked up. He was probably going through his schedule in his head, deciding if there was something he couldn't skip. Finally he grinned back at Duo. "I'll get breakfast."

A few minutes later Quatre returned with two bowls, a box of cereal, a milk bottle and two bottles of orange juice. Duo took the tray and Quatre settled beside him on the bed.

"You handle the milk." Duo gave Quatre the bottle. "I don't feel coordinated today."

"Wonder why…" Quatre laughed, poured the milk on the bowls and then put the bottle on the floor beside the bed. Without asking, he took the cereal box and repeated his actions. "Breakfast is served."

"You forgot the spoons."

"Damn it!" Quatre balanced his bowl on the bed before getting up to go to the kitchen. He threw a spoon at Duo's lap when he came back, and settled himself on the bed again. "So, had fun with Heero?

Duo almost knocked his bowl of cereal over the bed, but apparently Quatre was waiting for something like that and caught it before Duo's sheets could be covered in milk. "How do you know I was with him?"

"Wufei called and said he had driven you and your friend Heero home because you weren't sober enough." Quatre smirked. "And then Dorothy called and said she had found you about to stick your tongue in Ken's mouth in a dark ally."

It was good that Quatre hadn't let go of the bowl. "What!" Duo muttered a choice of curse words. "It wasn't like that."

"What was it like?" Quatre was still smirking.

Duo sighed. "I'm not sure. We were both drunk, and then we stopped walking and there was something." He shook his head. "And then Wufei came and whatever it was, wasn't there anymore."

"That doesn't sound like it was only the alcohol." Quatre opened his juice bottle and took a sip.

Duo concentrated on his Fruit Loops. Maybe things would be clear once he put some food in his stomach. Food was always good.

* * *

Heero looked at his cellphone as it rang. He tried to place the number but he didn't recognize it.

"Are you going to answer that?" Trowa asked.

"I don't know the number," Heero replied, still looking at the phone.

Trowa rolled his eyes. "Pick it up. What could happen?"

"Someone could hack into my phone line and use it to make international calls I would have to pay for."

Trowa chuckled, moved his hand to Heero's phone and pressed the button to accept the call. "Live dangerously," he whispered in a slightly mocking tone.

Heero glared at Trowa but put the phone to his ear anyway. "Who's this?"

There was a laugh at the other end of the line. "Do you always answer your phone like that?"

"Duo?" Heero smiled. "How did you get this number?"

"Trowa gave it to Quatre."

Heero turned to glare at Trowa again, but Trowa was conveniently looking out the cafeteria window, and looking way too innocent for Heero's comfort.

"I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight…" There was something weird about Duo's voice, and it took a while for Heero to realize he sounded nervous. "You see, Cat and his boytoy, otherwise known as your best friend, are watching a movie here, and I don't want to stay and play second fiddle. So, since Trowa is busy too I thought you might want to go grab a bite or something?"

"Yes." Heero frowned. He had replied way too fast.

"Good. We can meet somewhere then. What about pizza? There's a place near my apartment that's good and not too expensive. Maybe you can swing by with Trowa and we'll go out and leave the two loverboys alone?"

Heero chuckled. "See you tonight."

"Great! Bye."

"Bye." Heero ended the call and then just stared at his phone for a while.

"Duo and you have a date? A non date?" Trowa looked amused.

Heero busied himself with saving Duo's number in his phone and only answered when he was done. "I'm taking him out of the apartment so you and Quatre can be alone."

Trowa still looked amused. "Sure," he said. "You haven't told me about last night yet."

"It was during the afternoon," Heero corrected. "I spent the night sleeping."

"Okay. You haven't told me what happened yesterday afternoon."

"We had some beers." Heero shrugged.

Trowa rested his chin on his hand. "Except me, name another person you've had some beers with."

Without hesitation, Heero answered, "Quatre."

"I mean, alone."

This time Heero didn't have an answer.

* * *

The pizza was good. Heero seemed to like pepperoni and chicken too, which scored high on Duo's book. They had talked about many things, mainly action films and the Teletubbies, but no one had mentioned what had happened yesterday. They kept the conversation casual and Duo found that Heero had an interesting perspective on everything. Others might call it weird… actually, Duo would call it weird too, but he saw absolutely nothing wrong with it.

Duo glanced at his watch. It was only nine thirty, which meant that Trowa was probably still in the apartment. "Want to take a walk?"

Heero nodded, wiped his hands on a napkin and stood up.

The night was clear but cold. Duo put his hands inside his pockets and shivered slightly. Maybe the walk hadn't been such a good idea. "I guess, you and I… we're going to have some free time now, since they're going to be busy."

Heero zipped his jacket up but kept his hands on his sides. "Trowa is happy. He's my friend. I'm not jealous."

"Me neither. Quatre deserves to be happy. And believe me, I like Trowa much better than Quatre's ex."

"Was it bad?"

"It was the Devil Woman." Duo couldn't help but laugh at Heero's expression. Apparently Dorothy had made an impression.

Heero blinked a couple of times. "I thought Quatre was gay."

Duo shrugged. "He doesn't think in those terms. He falls for the person, not the gender."

Heero nodded and there was a proud smile on his face. "He's right for Trowa," he said, more to himself than to Duo. "In what terms do you think?"

Duo swallowed. Heero had the ability to ask intimate questions so casually. There was no bullshit with him. If he was curious about something he simply asked. It was something he and Duo shared. "I tried girls. They don't do it for me."

Somehow they'd found their way to the park. Duo walked to the fountain. He fished a coin from his pocket and threw it in.

"For luck?" asked Heero.

"It can't hurt."

Another coin fell on the water. Duo turned to Heero, surprised, and Heero shrugged. "It can't hurt."

They looked at the fountain quietly for a few minutes until Duo broke the silence. "In what terms do you think?"

"I don't." Heero put a knee on the border of the fountain and kept his eyes fixed on the water and the coins underneath. Duo thought Heero was done talking, but then Heero added, "I've never found anyone who interested me that way."

"Never?" Duo knew he sounded sad, so he tried to smile, to pretend that the conversation was still casual.

"Not before."

"And now?" Duo held his breath.

Heero wasn't looking at the fountain anymore. His eyes locked with Duo's and he said, "I'm interested."

Duo wasn't sure who moved first but suddenly they were kissing. It was a soft kiss; their mouths only parted a little and their tongues only touched each other's lips briefly.

And then a phone rang.

Heero growled and Duo laughed slightly. It was Heero's phone. He took it out of his jacket and said, "What?" There was a pause as Heero listened and then he said, "Fine, five minutes," and put the phone back in his pocket. "Trowa is ready to go."

"I guess we should head back then." Duo started walking but Heero grabbed his hand.

"Let's have lunch tomorrow." It wasn't phrased as a question but Duo could hear the slight hesitation in Heero's voice.

Duo grinned. "It's a date."

* * *

- The End - 


End file.
